UK Marketing, Fashion and Lifestyle Blog by 21 year old Fashion Business and Promotion Graduate, Lauren Evans.

Monday, 4 May 2015

#thisdoesntmeanyes

A new fashion campaign headed by Rape Crisis South London, and led by four feminist campaigners has been drumming up consumer interest as of late with the much shared hashtag, #thisdoesntmeanyes.

This campaign follows a survey conducted by Amnesty International, which revealed that a quarter of people believe women are partially responsible for being raped if they wear revealing clothing (shocking, I know.)

The campaign features over 2000 women, all wearing their favourite outfits, accompanied by the #thisdoesntmeanyes hashtag. The message is simple, "neither what I wear, nor what I do, is ever an invitation for rape."

The girls whom started the #thisdoesntmeanyes movement, said their inspiration for came from a simple night out in a bar.

"About two months ago, we were in a bar next to some men. They were looking at another woman across the room, who was quite provocatively dressed." "One of the guys said, 'Oh, she's asking for it.'"

The girls then went onto explain that one of their friends they were with in the bar had been raped herself, and found the men's misogynistic comments upsetting. "When she was raped, she had been wearing her pyjamas." This goes to show that rape has absolutely nothing to do with what a woman is wearing.

The campaign photos have since gone viral and the girls believe the message is helping to empower women in a positive way. They are encouraging women and girls alike to hashtag their Instagram selfies and share the campaign across social media to promote the cause.

I think this campaign is brilliant; I personally hope the campaign raises much needed awareness of the message, and in turn helps victims of rape realise they are not at all to blame.

To find out more about the campaign, you can visit the Rape Crisis South London website here, and visit the official #thisdoesntmeanyes website here.